Last week, we had a chance to review Hungry Helga HD for the iPad. Today we are reviewing the iPhone version of Hungry Helga by indie developer Grid Monsters. The iPhone version is optimized for the smaller screen of the device and is also optimized for Apples new Retina Display on the iPhone 4 and new iPod Touch.

The story of Hungry Helga goes a little something like this: you are the captain of a viking vessel. Your sole duty is to keep your viking wife Helga happy by feeding her delicious fish. You must keep her nice and fat otherwise Helga will be very mad and destroy your vessel.

As strange as the story is, the gameplay is pure fun. By using a combination of the touch screen and tilt sensors, you fire bombs into the water in order to kill a large school of fish. You then tilt you device to move the ship from left to right so you can collect the fish to feed to Helga. As Helga starts to get fat, a golden halo of light forms around her. When it becomes full strength, she begins to sing and you can tap on her to release a heavenly power that will destroy most of the fish on the level.

Hungry Helga start off fairly easy just to get you accustomed to the controls. As you progress, the levels get more challenging due to the fact that the fish become smarter and you also have to compete with other prey like seagulls and sharks. You also have to watch out for icebergs that get in your way.

As fun as the gameplay is and as good as the graphics are, the audio in Hungry Helga is also quite good. The soundtrack has a very viking feel to it and they’ve even added ambient ocean sounds. I also love how they added audio clues of when Helga is ready to unleash her fury by having her sing. Its a nice touch.

Final Thoughts

Grid Monsters created a fantastic game with Hungry Helga. The game itself isn’t really that difficult but its very fun and hard to put down once you start. If you have an iPhone 4 or iPod Touch 4th gen, you’ll really appreciate how awesome the graphics look. It’s almost like playing a work of art. I highly recommend picking up Hungry Helga thanks to its unique and addicting gameplay, amazing graphics, and quirkiness.

The only suggestion I would make to Grid Monsters for Hungry Helga is to add Game Center support so that I can compare my scores with my friends and add some achievements for some added challenges.

Hungry Helga is available now in the App Store for 99 cents. It is optimized for the iPhone 4 and iPod Touch 4th gen retina displays.

Rating: A+

Description

Captain Kjirk has a big mouth to feed. Help him keep Helga happy and keep her from destroying their ship by feeding her fish. Lots and lots of fish. And watch out for sharks and those pesky seagulls.

Hungry Helga is a fast-paced action game from new indie game developer, Grid Monsters. It features beautiful graphics and original music.

FEATURES:
– Simple but addictive gameplay: tap the screen to fire cannonballs at the fish and tilt your device to move your boat and collect them.
– Over time the fish become faster and stronger while seagulls, sharks, and icebergs hinder your progress.
– Once Helga has eaten enough, she reaches a state of nirvana and can call on the gods for assistance. Watch her boil the water or zap fish with lightning bolts. Tap her spinning halo to activate her power.
– Changing scenery and weather.
– Enjoy the game’s original music or listen to your own music through the iPod app.
– Local leaderboard. Game Center support in the future.
– Takes full advantage of retina display.

Helga needs to eat! It’s your job to keep her happy.

[via App Store]